www.electionin.org

Organisation : Office of the Electoral Commissioner Seychelles
Facility : How to Vote
Country : Seychelles

How to Vote : https://www.ecs.sc/
Home page : http://www.ecs.sc/

Voting :
Rights to vote :
Every person registered as a voter in an electoral area is entitle to vote, in accordance with the Act, at an election or at a referendum in the electoral area.

How to Vote :
** Go to the polling station in the electoral area where you are registered to vote
** When you enter the polling Station, you will be guided straight to the Assistant Electoral Officer (AEO).
** The AEO will check if you have not voted already by verifying if there is no indelible ink on your left thumb nail and/or invisible ink on your forefinger.
** You will then identify yourself to the AEO by calling your name in such a tone for the election personnel, candidates, polling agents to hear and produce your National Identity Card and other I.D. to the AEO.
** When your name has been found on the Electoral Register, the AEO will call out the page number, the serial number and your particulars/polling agents to hear.
** A second AEO will then put indelible marking on the base of your fingernail or left thumb, invisible ink on the left forefinger and perforate/stamp a ballot paper and hand this over to you and advise you to and advise you to proceed to any vacant polling booth.
** In the polling booth you will make a mark, with the felt-marker, in the box provided on the ballot paper, against the name of the Presidential candidate of your choice or National assembly candidates.
** You will then fold the ballot paper conveniently so as not to reveal your choice and then move out of the polling booth.
** You will then be directed towards the ballots box in which you will drop your ballot paper where all can see and leave the polling station.

VOTE-It gives you a say on important issues that affect you!

Seychelles Electoral Systems :
Legal basis :
Constitution of the Republic of Seychelles, June 18, 1993; amended 1994, 1995, 1996 and 2000.
Elections Act, 17 of 1995 as amended.
Political Parties (Registration and Regulation) Act, 1991 as amended 1995, 1996.

Electoral system :
Parliamentary Elections: Mixed system. Direct universal adult franchise first-past-post constituency elections combined with proportional representation.

Presidential Elections: President is elected by absolute majority through universal adult franchise.

Election period :
Parliamentary and presidential elections every 5 years, but not necessarily concurrently.

Electoral institutions : Electoral Commissioner.

Functions of electoral institutions :
To conduct and supervise voter registration, elections and referenda, to delimit constituencies and to review election campaigns.

Independence of electoral institutions :
Commissioner appointed by the President from candidates nominated by the Constitutional Appointments Authority. There are no provisions for the removal of the Commissioner from office.

Demarcation :
The Electoral Commissioner delimits according to constitutional guidelines. According to the Constitution there may not be less than 19 electoral areas on the island of Mahe, two on Praslin and one for the Inner Islands (25 total). Boundaries are reviewed 3 years before every election.

Voter registration :
Continious registration :
A general registration of voters takes place every year. Registration is on voters roll with constituency registration officers who are subject to the control of the Chief Registration officer.

Voter education :
Although not tasked by law with voter education the Commissioner’s Office has a Voter Education Department.

Nomination of candidates :
Parliamentary Elections: Constituency candidate nominations must be endorsed by the number of registered voters published by the Commissioner and must pay a deposit. Proportional representation candidates are nominated political parties on lists.
Presidential Elections: Presidential candidate nominations must be endorsed by the number of registered voters published by the Commissioner and must pay a deposit

Funding of political parties :
Parties receive public funding from a fund administered by the Commissioner in proportion to their performance in the previous National Assembly election.
Parties and candidates are not required to disclose the source of funds raised, but must disclose to the Electoral Commissioner amounts received and how funds were expended.

Election campaign :
A code of conduct governing the political activity of parties and candidates has been issued by the Commissioner. Campaigning ceases two days before election day.

Communication :
The Commissioner is empowered to allocate free time to political parties and candidates on an equal basis in consultation with the Seychelles Broadcasting Corporation.

Counting :
After the close of the poll the Electoral Officer gives notice of the time the counting is to begin. At that time the Electoral Officer and enumerators, in the presence of candidates or their agents, proceed to count and verify the ballots cast.

Announcement of results :
The Electoral Officer transmits the results to the Commissioner and the all the documentation to the Chief Electoral Officer. The Commissioner declares the results and ensures they are published in the Gazette.

Conflict resolution :
In the event of a dispute over the results, the Constitutional Court has authority to hear complaints. Decisions may be appealed in the Seychelles Court of Appeal.

Election observation :
Observers are accredited by the EMB, and issued with a code of conduct